


Cedar

by massuneko



Category: VIXX
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Historical, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-18
Updated: 2018-01-18
Packaged: 2019-03-06 08:25:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,662
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13407306
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/massuneko/pseuds/massuneko
Summary: Taekwoon had been pestering Wonshik for the past five years to give him a tattoo. He never agreed, and only gave him a body painting in return. But a turn of event finally changed his mind.





	Cedar

Taekwoon came again to the tattoo parlor with even more determination than before. He knew that Wonshik was already done inking the tattoo for his last customer, so he’s currently free, and therefore he should have nothing left in his sleeves to reject Taekwoon’s request.

“Wonshik! I’m here for my—”

Taekwoon’s words were cut off when he slid open the door to the inner chamber and saw a man lying down on the mattress while Wonshik was carefully pricking the skin with ink-infused needle. Both Wonshik and the stranger looked up when they heard Taekwoon entering, but Wonshik quickly returned his focus to his work when he saw who came.

“Go home,  _ Hyung. _ I’m busy,” said Wonshik without even looking.

“You’ve promised me that you’ll give me a tattoo since eight months ago.  _ Eight. _ You can’t just send me home like this,” protested Taekwoon.

“I said I’ll give you tattoo when I don’t have any customers left, which is impossible since I’m  _ that _ famous, so in short it’s not going to happen anytime soon. Now please go home,” replied Wonshik nonchalantly. Taekwoon huffed loudly and stomped into the room, sitting at the corner where he usually stayed and glared at Wonshik.

“Please ignore him. He’s always like that,” murmured Wonshik apologetically to his customer. The customer chuckled a little and shook his head.

“I’ve heard the rumors, about your shop being regularly visited by an angry black kitten. I see that the rumor is true,” teased the customer. Taekwoon pouted deeper at the statement, but he said nothing and continued to glare at Wonshik.

Within an hour, Taekwoon already fell asleep out of boredom, while Wonshik was still concentrating with his work. After he’s finally done with the outline, he helped the customer to see it, and received his first payment with much gratitude. He sent out the customer after reminding him of the next appointment, then returned to the inner chamber to wake Taekwoon up.

“Are you going to give me my tattoo?” slurred Taekwoon as he rubbed his eyes sleepily. Wonshik chuckled and shook his head.

“I’ll paint your arm like how you always like, though,” said Wonshik as he held out his hand. Taekwoon pouted in dissatisfaction, but he still held out his left arm anyway.

This time, Wonshik painted an intricate wave design. As beautiful as it was, Taekwoon knew that it would disappear within days—a week at most, if he didn’t let any drop of water touched it. He had always wanted something more permanent, something that would remind him of the young tattoo artist whenever he saw it. But for the past five years, Wonshik always denied him of that request.

“It’s done,” said Wonshik as he put down his brush. The wave looked alive, as if it would really fall out from Taekwoon’s arm and swallowed everything whole, dragging everyone and everything to the bottom of the ocean.

“Are you coming to tomorrow’s performance?” asked Taekwoon as he carefully lifted his arm, observing the design a little closer.

“No. I still have some work to do,” said Wonshik as usual. Taekwoon was already too tired to be offended, having his invitation turned down every time.

“If suddenly your schedule clears up, always remember that the offer is still on,” said Taekwoon.

After the paint was completely dry, Taekwoon excused himself, already late for his practice. Wonshik walked him out and bid a goodbye, before turning back into his house.

* * *

One of the very few perks Wonshik had as a tattoo artist was that he got all the juiciest gossips while he was working. He didn’t go out much except to get some supplies and restocking his food, so the gossips his customers got was all he had about the outside world. Sometimes he found it fascinating that despite how little his interaction with people was, he still managed to get the most important information about almost everyone.

Among all the gossips he got that week, the most recent one hit him really hard, like some sort of a twisted wake-up call. It got him frozen in place, blinking slowly as he tried to process the news.

Taekwoon was bought by a wealthy merchant, and would be leaving the dance theatre in one month.

It’s not rare for a dancer to be bought away, and with Taekwoon’s beauty, Wonshik was sure that there had been plenty of offers for him. The thing was, usually Taekwoon refused all those offers, no matter how high the price was, since he still held up his pride as an independent dancer. Wonshik really didn’t know what prompted him to change his mind like that.

Remembering that he still had to finish his work, he forced himself to concentrate. He managed to finish it even with his mind scattering everywhere.

That night, Wonshik barely could even sleep. He was tossing and turning and the image of Taekwoon’s face would resurface every time he stared at an empty space for too long.

As Wonshik was tending his garden to distract himself from any thoughts about Taekwoon that afternoon, the dancer himself showed up at his door. He didn’t yell loudly like he usually did, only standing and watching as Wonshik put away his gardening tools and approached him.

“I’m here to get a tattoo,” said Taekwoon softly. Wonshik nodded, then opened the door for them. He led Taekwoon to the inner chamber where he worked on his customers, then told him to wait there while he went to wash his hands thoroughly.

When Wonshik was back into the chamber, Taekwoon was sitting at his usual spot in the corner of the room. Wonshik gestured him to move to the mattress, and Taekwoon did so slowly. Wonshik sat cross-legged beside his tools, then told Taekwoon to sit down first.

“Are you really going to give me a tattoo now?” asked Taekwoon hesitantly, not quite believing that Wonshik would finally listen to his long time request.

“Depends on how this conversation is going. I need to know where you want your tattoo to be,” said Wonshik straightforwardly, just like how he usually talked to his customers. Taekwoon looked unsure, and he really was, since he hadn’t exactly thought about how he wanted it.

“Uh… I want it somewhere hidden from the public eye… So, on my hip, I guess?” said Taekwoon.

Wonshik nodded, then told Taekwoon to stand up a bit. He took a cloth from his side and tied it around Taekwoon’s waist, opening at the side. After asking for permission, Wonshik pulled down Taekwoon’s trousers to reveal his bare hip. Taekwoon held his breath as Wonshik knelt down and ran his calloused hand along it, sending sparks all over his nerves.

“What design do you want it to be?” asked Wonshik again as he looked up, hand already dropping to his side. Taekwoon racked his brain, trying to think just what he wanted drawn there, what could remind him of Wonshik every time he saw it.

“Cedar,” said Taekwoon softly. “Just like the one growing in your garden, right beside the entrance.”

* * *

He first met Wonshik under that tree. At that time, Taekwoon couldn’t stand the harsh dance practice anymore and ran away from the theatre. He didn’t watch where he was going, only wanting to be as far away as possible, before the rain stopped his track. It was really cold and harsh, and he mindlessly tried to find a shelter just anywhere. Then, he saw a tall cedar tree, and without realizing that it was inside someone’s garden, he quickly ran to take shelter under it.

The heavy rain and the strong wind made him shivered from head to toe. He squatted down and made himself as small as possible, pressing his back to the trunk as he vaguely thought if it’s the heaven’s punishment for him because he ran away. But his thought was cut short when he felt the rain stopped pouring on his head, and raised his gaze just to find a man holding out an umbrella for him.

“Can you stand?” asked the man as he held out his hand to Taekwoon. Taekwoon took it, feeling the warmth spreading from that hand to his whole being as he stood up slowly.

“It’s cold outside. Come in,” he said again as he guided Taekwoon to his house, pressing close to him without thinking about the soaking clothes.

The man introduced himself as Wonshik, a well-known tattoo artist. He let Taekwoon to take a warm bath and lent him a set of dry clothes. Just as Taekwoon finished changing his clothes, a visitor came and Wonshik greeted him at the front door. As Wonshik and his visitor walked to the inner chamber, they passed by Taekwoon, and Wonshik beckoned him to follow into the chamber.

“Your apprentice?” the visitor asked. Wonshik shook his head, gesturing the visitor to sit on the mattress.

“A guest. I hope you don’t mind a spectator,” replied Wonshik calmly.

Taekwoon watched as Wonshik put in colors into the outline drawn earlier, making the red camellia blooming on that person’s shoulder looked alive. If he didn’t watch the process, he’d think that the person really grew out a flower from his shoulder.

After cleaning the excess ink and the blood that got drawn out, Wonshik helped him to see the tattoo. The man looked satisfied with the result, letting Wonshik to apply some balm on the tattooed skin and bandaged it, giving him instructions for the aftercare and how long until it’s safe to take off the bandage completely.

Wonshik received his last payment and sent the man off, telling him to be careful on the way home since it was still raining. When Wonshik returned to the chamber, Taekwoon asked him for a tattoo, and Wonshik flat out refused him since he knew that Taekwoon was penniless and he’s not the type who’d work for free. Still, Taekwoon’s pleading face melted him a little, so he painted a hibiscus on the back of his hand.

Since that day, Taekwoon would always come back to ask for a tattoo, denied flat out, and got a body painting in return.

* * *

Wonshik asked Taekwoon to lay down on his side. Unlike his other customers so far, he didn’t go straight to tattooing the design. Instead, he brought the usual brush and ink he used to paint on Taekwoon, and carefully brushed out the design he had in mind.

“I’ll paint it first so you can reconsider whether you really want it permanently on your skin or not,” explained Wonshik. Taekwoon nodded, watching as the cedar leaves appeared on his hip. It’s as if someone buried a cedar seed and it sprouted out from Taekwoon’s skin, caressing it softly.

“Many people with tattoo are regarded as broken goods. I don’t know if it’s a good idea to have one, considering your current circumstances,” said Wonshik, his eyes not leaving the intricate pattern he was painting. Taekwoon chuckled a little.

“So you’ve heard the news,” said Taekwoon gloomily.

“Words travel really fast these days,” replied Wonshik almost immediately. Taekwoon sighed, staring outside the open window.

“Maybe I want to be regarded as one. I don’t know. I guess as long as I’m not being undressed in front of him, he won’t realize that I am not as pure as he thought,” said Taekwoon wistfully. Wonshik didn’t respond, only concentrating on his work.

Once he was done, he let Taekwoon to observe it. Without even thinking twice, Taekwoon nodded to it, loving it the way he loved every single design Wonshik ever painted on him.

“How much are you going to charge for this?” asked Taekwoon, already figuring that he should get some money ready if he really wanted it. Wonshik seemed to ponder a little, eyes staring at the cedar painting on Taekwoon’s hip with calculating eyes. Suddenly, Taekwoon felt much too aware of how exposed he was, although he didn’t mind because it was Wonshik.

“I’ll give it for free. Consider it as a good luck gift from me,” said Wonshik eventually, shifting his gaze to look directly into Taekwoon’s eyes. Taekwoon felt really bitter hearing those words, but he knew that it’s inevitable.

“When will you start, then?” asked Taekwoon.

“If you’re free tomorrow, just come here. You can come at any hour. I’ll be waiting,” said Wonshik.

With that, Taekwoon put back his trousers and went out with a promise to come back the day after. Wonshik walked him to the front door and told him to take care on his way back.

* * *

It was past lunchtime already when Taekwoon arrived. Wonshik didn’t waste any time, bringing Taekwoon to the chamber to work on the tattoo. Just like the previous day, he tied a cloth around Taekwoon’s waist before exposing his hip and told Taekwoon to lay down on his side. He gave Taekwoon some sedatives to help with the upcoming pain, then cleaned most of the paint from the other day, leaving only faint traces for him to follow.

It took awhile until Taekwoon was used to the pain, even with the help of sedative. Wonshik had to grip him strongly to restrain his sudden movements, so that he wouldn’t accidentally hurt Taekwoon. Afterwards, the whole process was almost hypnotizing for Taekwoon. The feeling of Wonshik’s strong hand resting on his bare hip, fingers brushing every now and then, helped to distract himself from the pain.

Wonshik only stopped to light up some candles when the sun began to sink in the horizon. He seemed to be determined to finish the design in one sitting, as if he didn’t want to keep Taekwoon any longer.

And he might do feel that way, Taekwoon thought. If Wonshik was finally giving the tattoo Taekwoon asked for the past five years, he wouldn’t be pestering Wonshik anymore. That, added with the fact that Taekwoon was bought to be taken someplace far away, could be the real reason why Wonshik suddenly agreeing to Taekwoon’s endless begging.

The thought made him felt sad, so he focused on watching Wonshik’s face, remembering every curves and beauty marks, and how his brows scrunched in concentration. He burned everything into his memory, because he knew that they probably wouldn’t meet each other anymore.

It was really late when Wonshik finally announced that he’s done. He washed the excess ink and some blood that got drawn, then helped Taekwoon to see the result. It was breathtaking, even more than the painting he had before. And, hidden among the leaves and the cones, Wonshik’s name was finally branded into his skin.

“It’s beautiful,” whispered Taekwoon, only loud enough for the two of them to hear it. Wonshik thanked him, then proceeded to apply some soothing balm as he recited the usual aftercare instruction.

Then, Wonshik bent down to place a soft kiss just above Taekwoon’s tattoo. The gesture made Taekwoon’s breath hitched, heart pounding in his ears. When Wonshik straightened up again, Taekwoon didn’t give him any chance to speak or run away. He quickly pushed himself up, ignoring the pain, to hook his hands on Wonshik’s neck and pulled him into a searing kiss.

“Take me,” breathed Taekwoon in-between kisses, “Break me.”

And Wonshik gave him just what he wanted.

* * *

Wonshik was there at the theatre to say his final goodbye to Taekwoon. They held each other like the whole world was going to collapse if they let go, savoring every last second they had. When they finally released their hug, Taekwoon was already in the verge of crying.

“One day,” Wonshik murmured as he brought Taekwoon’s hands to his lips, “One day I will earn enough money to buy you back. Until then, please wait for me.”

Taekwoon let out a shaky breath and nodded, knowing that there was nothing else he could do anyway.

“Don’t keep me waiting for too long,” said Taekwoon, and Wonshik’s answer was a solemn nod.


End file.
